JB
Kronos, the king of Darkness and Evil sat across from me, eyeing me up and down like I was some kind of science experiment. It also didn't help that at the time he was wearing my friend's face, a twisted and arrogant smirk plastered on Damien's usually blank features. After what felt like forever, Kronos finally spoke up.
"They're not going to come looking for you, Jonathan; outside of this cabin, time isn't really flowing as it normally would." He explained, gesturing out the window where a flock of birds was frozen mid-flap.
"H-how are you still alive? Percy-" I was interrupted by his sudden outburst of laughter.
"What?! You honestly thought that some preteen demigod could actually destroy me? I'm Kronos, the Lord of Time. Did you never stop to consider that I may have seen this coming? I made sure that I had put enough of my essence into my blade so that I would be able to take over another vessel." He stated, patting Damien's chest in emphasis. I tried to swallow the giant lump in my throat, but it didn't seem to want to go down.
"S-so I guess this is the part where you-"
"Peel the flesh from your bones?" Kronos supplied. The look on his face spoke more volumes than his words; that contented, blissful sigh that escaped his lips made it clear he would love nothing more.
"Ah, to go back to simpler times. 10 years ago, I wouldn't have blinked twice before vaporizing you just for being in my presence." He raged, Damien's eyes glowing golden, then dying down with another, more deflated sigh.
"Unfortunately, times have changed. Events have begun to unfold that are beyond even my control; at least in this weakened form. So, for the time being, just assume that I am restraining my desire murder you." He explained. It took me a while to process everything that was going on; Kronos was back, but apparently couldn't murder me quite yet? I was confused, scared, and wishing I was dead, but I tried to push it all aside and focus.
"Not that I'm complaining, but why exactly can't you kill me yet?" I asked. Kronos didn't say anything, but I could tell by the look on his face that he wasn't kidding around; if I didn't know any better, I'd say he almost looked... scared.
"Like I said, events are unfolding that are beyond my control. I'm sure even you little insects have noticed by now that some of the less important Olympians have started to go missing." Damien asked.
"Y-yeah I've heard rumors, but the Camp counselors-"
"Well, the rumors are true. Problem is Olympus has no idea what's heading it's way." He stated ominously. I could feel my mouth growing dry as Kronos' evil glare penetrated straight through me.
"But of course, you know." I tried to sound sarcastic even though I was literally about a glare away from needing a change of pants. I could tell by his change in demeanor that he was just itching to turn me to dust, but was forcing himself to resist the urge to scratch.
"Yes, I do. Don't forget, the Olympians are my children; there are things out there that they couldn't even imagine." He growled.
"And I'm guessing this is one of those things?" I asked. Kronos legitimately looked like my presence was annoying him to his core; like I was a mosquito that, for some reason, he was allowing to leech off of him.
"Well, at least I won't have to explain that to you." He grumbled. I tried desperately to actually wrap my head around what he was saying but... what he was trying to make me believe seemed just too crazy to even consider. Then again, if he was lying, why would he even be talking to me right now? I wasn't so dense that I seriously believed I could trust the merciless titan, but as of currently I didn't have any other choice but to hear him out.
"Ok, let's say I'm actually considering believing you... what is this 'thing' that's threatening to destroy Olympus?" I asked, but Kronos shook his head.
"Oh no, not just Olympus; if this threat is not eliminated, make no mistake it will decimate everything in its path. Olympus, the mortal world; everything." Kronos explained. The wild look in his eyes made me nervous and a bit scared; he seemed to be telling the truth. He stood up, leaning against the wall and trying to look nonchalant, but I had seen enough.
"As for what it is... I don't think your tiny, mortal mind is ready to get a grip around it quite yet." Kronos smirked menacingly. I couldn't believe what I was hearing; after all that beating around the bush Kronos was going to hold out on me? He must have known what I was thinking, reaching across the table and grabbing a random napkin that happened to be laying there, pulling a pen out of Damien's pocket and jotting something down as he spoke.
"Look, I know exactly what you're planning, Johnathan; if I let you just walk out the door, the first thing you're going to do is run to Jackson and blab about how
I'm taking up residence in Coolio's noggin." He said, tapping Damien's temple with the pen before continuing to write.
"And we I think we both know I can't have you doing that." He continued, glancing up at me hungrily. I could feel my heart stop, my life flashing before my eyes as I waited. Kronos suddenly began to chuckle, rolling his eyes as he put the cap back onto the pen, throwing it over his shoulder unceremoniously.
"I'm sorry, it's just... the look on your face; priceless. Wow, I really want to just... crush you into dust right now." He laughed. After a moment, he regained his composure with a sober sigh.
"But, as I said, that'll have to wait. As of currently, you're still of use to me. So, to keep you from spilling our big secret, I'm going to completely wipe your memory of our little heart-to-heart. You won't remember a thing; scout's honor." He promised with a twisted grin, holding the napkin out to me. I glanced down at it, not really thrilled about taking my eyes off of the King of Darkness. From what I read, it looked to be a list of ingredients along with a couple of lines in some language I couldn't for the life of me even recognize. At the vey bottom, it simply said 'give to witch girl.' I looked back up at Kronos, who was staring at me expectantly.
"Um... you're welcome?" He offered. I cleared my throat, finally finding my voice.
"And what about you?" I asked, Kronos' smirk deepening.
"Oh, I'm gonna be sticking around for a while, riding shotgun until the circumstances are a bit more... favorable. That'll point you in the right direction. The daughter of Athena is nothing if not persistent... she'll know what to do." He promised, walking back into the boy's room.
"Well, Johnathan; it's been fun, but it's time for the forget-me-stick. At least, until next time." He finished. Before I could even argue, Kronos snapped his fingers, everything around me going dark.
I woke up standing outside of the cabin, trying to figure out just what I was going to say to Damien; he wasn't exactly the easiest person in the world to try and talk to, much less convince to stay and fight with us. I mean, I knew it couldn't have been easy, having someone dredge up bad memories like that, but he had to know that Loralai didn't mean it. Just as I was about to open the door, it flew open, Damien almost colliding with me as he stepped outside.
"Hey, I was just about to come and talk to you." I explained, but Damien wasn't listening.
"Where's Jackson?" He asked. I pointed down the path towards the rest of the group, quickly following behind him.
"Look, Damien; Percy told me that you're thinking about leaving the team. And don't get me wrong, I totally understand that you feel betrayed because of what happened, but Loralai... she didn't mean anything that happened. We're all still kind of new at using our abilities in combat. My point is, we really need you here, man." I finished. Damien simply stopped, turning to look at me blankly.
"Yeah, I know. Look, I just got a little overheated; probably just me waking up too early this morning. I'm not going anywhere, so don't blow your top; we've got a quest to complete first, right?" He asked. I honestly couldn't believe what I was hearing. Here I was, ready to give try and fight to keep him on our team, and in some miraculous turn of events, he was deciding to stay all on his own. I couldn't help the giddy feeling coursing through my veins as I smirked and nodded, continuing to walk with him down the path. When the others saw us coming, I could tell they were all on edge, ready for Damien to verbally nuke them where they stood. He shuffled his feet, staring at the ground and refusing to look any of them in the eyes.
"Um... look, I uh... I know I probably overreacted earlier; it's just that some of my memories I would really rather leave buried. Still I... I may have said some things that I really didn't mean and, um... I guess what I'm trying to say-what I'm trying to ask you is-"
"I forgive you." Loralai interrupted. I could have sworn that Loralai's face flushed ever so slightly as she glanced around at the rest of us, clearing her throat.
"I mean, we forgive you. And I'd just like to tell ya I'm so sorry... I'm so sorry for what I did to ya. I honestly didn't mean for any of it to happen." She continued, the tears in her eyes threatening to spill over at any moment.
"It's all good. Let's just pretend it never happened." Damien suggested, actually smiling a tiny bit. That smile turned straight to shock as Loralai suddenly surged forwards, throwing her arms around Damien's neck and hugging him tightly. As soon as she did, she hopped back, both Damien and Loralai's cheeks turning a slight scarlet.
"S-sorry bout that. Imma hugger." Loralai explained, Damien scratching the back of his arm and nodding.
"Uh, yeah... I noticed." He stuttered a little bit. Percy coughed loudly, trying desperately not to chuckle at the two of them. He instantly sobered, placing a hand on Damien's shoulder with a genuine smile.
"It's good to have you back, Damien." He said, Dame simply nodding. Annabeth stepped up, raising an eyebrow.
"Yeah, it is; but this whole episode completely threw off our training regimen for today; I hope you're all ready to put in a few extra hours today." She warned. Literally all of us groaned, either out loud or with our eyes. I crammed my hands in my pockets grouchily, my right hand closing around what felt to be a crumpled up napkin in my pocket. As we all walked down to the beach for what Annabeth was calling 'stamina training', I unfolded the napkin carefully, reading the instructions that had been scrawled hastily onto it. For a split second, my heart rate accelerated, like I was remembering... something. Before I could even try and put my finger on it, the feeling vanished as I shook my head, remembering that I had seen this writing in my dream last night; I had just forgotten to give it to Loralai. As I ran to catch up with her, I couldn't help but feel a sense of peace and glee; we had gone from shattered to back on track. And man, it felt so good to be back.